>> i'm freaking out. felt it! . fearless on the frontlines in iraq. >> pretty amazing i saw her as like a really strong soldier but something had her terrified at home. >> i'm just scared. [ crying ] >> i don't feel safe. [ crying ] >> reporter: a desperate call to police and then she vanished. >> something made her pretty scared.

>> yes. >> but there's nothing to say what that was >> >> right. >> >> reporter: what had happened to this beautiful army sergeant? that question would launch a spellbinding mystery. you've got a roommate, you got a boyfriend who she is maybe about to dump you got an ex-boyfriend who's suddenly back in her life. >> there were a number of potential suspects --absolutely >> was a killer out there? >> she was in danger. >> reporter: could police catch him? they'd hatch a plan of virtual genius. >> one of the detectives said -- "you're not gonna believe this!" i'm lester holt and this is dateline. here's josh mankiewicz with mystery in orange county. >> reporter: orange county, california. on tv, it's a place of sun, fun, and privilege. it's where the real housewives first aired their dirty laundry. >> 'what is wrong?' 'nothing's wrong with me, it's you' >> reporter: it's where the kids from the oc showed us all what

temperature cool really was. >> who is that? >> reporter: around here, you get the sense everyone's rich and white and lives in a mansion with a view of the pacific. >> reporter: but step back from the coast, and you'll see the orange county that isn't on tv. not as wealthy. not as white. full of those who came here from somewhere else, chasing a better life. >> reporter: and finding it in places like santa ana, a mostly working class immigrant community in the shadow of disneyland. it's the part of the oc where people know that to survive they'll have to work hard. >> reporter: maribel ramos arrived here as a baby, leaving mexico behind. she would not only survive here but thrive. to tell you the truth, this should be the story of a woman who worked hard to change her life, and in doing so, carved a path for others to follow. >> hello? >> hi, orange police. >> reporter: but this story is going to end differently.

>> why are you crying? >> because i'm afraid. >> reporter: there are some parts of life that hard work just can't fix. >> i'm just scared. [ sniffs ] >> i'm just like calling to let you guys know that if something happens, i did it because i was trying to defend myself. >> reporter: some things that are beyond our control. >> all i'm trying to say is that i'm warning, i'm honestly -- i will fight for my life and i swear i will -- i will kill him. >> reporter: all of this should never have reached that point of no return. so maybe it's a story of simple bad luck, of two lives that should never have come together. >> tell me about growin' up with maribel. [ laughter ] >> reporter: what was she like? >> trouble maker. mom wanted her to stay in the home, and she wanted to go play baseball. >> reporter: tom boy? >> yes, yes. >> reporter: her sister lucy says tomboy maribel ramos also

had a spark. >> reporter: i mean, she'd come in and immediately, what? introduce herself to everybody, and? >> make friends, and people were drawn to her. easy to talk to. >> reporter: you saw boys interested in her? >> oh, definitely. yeah. definitely -- >> reporter: from an early age? >> from an early age. >> reporter: and that never ended, did it? >> no, no. >> reporter: little sister lucy remembers how maribel was also in charge of watching out for her while their single mother often worked two jobs to make ends meet. >> reporter: you were how much younger? >> seven years younger. >> reporter: lot of girls wouldn't want their little sister tagging along. >> no. she didn't want to, but she had to. [ laughter ] >> reporter: yet even as a child, maribel figured out that a different world existed, and she wanted to live there. > oh, she knew at a young age that there was a lot more to life than what we had around us. there's things you can do. and go to school and have opportunities. and live in a nicer house. >> reporter: she saw all of that? >> yeah, yeah. definitely. >> reporter: maribel ramos knew

she'd have to work hard to get what and where she wanted. >> reporter: after high school, she worked in security at kmart and hatched a long-term plan to become a cop. but she'd need a college degree and that meant money. >> reporter: so maribel ramos became private first class ramos. she joined the army hoping to use the g.i. bill. her first day was august 8th, 2001. and just 34 days later, the whole world changed. >> reporter: we all sort of recoiled in horror. but you probably also thought, "that's gonna affect my sister." >> yes. i turn on the tv, and the towers are crumbling. first thing i thought was, "oh my gosh. my sister's going to war." how do you wrap your mind around that? >> reporter: lucy worried. their mother worried -- but maribel was like a rock. >> reporter: what did maribel say about goin' overseas? >> she didn't ah -- express her

feelings about it. she just said, "well, i'm-- this is what's happening, sister. you need to talk to mom. >> reporter: maribel went to war in iraq. >> reporter: what was it like to see her in uniform? >> it was -- it was pretty amazing. >> reporter: giselle cendejas is lucy's daughter -- maribel's niece. >> i saw her as, like, a really brave, strong soldier. sometimes i wouldn't even see her as my aunt. it was just, like, whoa, you're -- you're going out there, like, to save everybody. >> reporter: you were proud of her? >> yeah. >> reporter: maribel learned to jump out of airplanes. she manned the guns for armed convoys. she saw more than her share of combat. she also made sergeant. and when her tour in iraq ended, she reenlisted for another. she seemed fearless. >> reporter: she could very easily have become a casualty. >> yes and other people did die. well, other friends of hers. >> reporter: in 2009, after two tours in iraq, maribel left the

army and set part two of her plan into action, enrolling in college. but adjusting back to civilian life wasn't as easy as maribel had expected. like a lot of war veterans -- she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder or p.t.s.d. >> reporter: she'd seen some terrible things. she ever talk about that? >> not with me. >> reporter: instead she focused on school, work, and family -- especially her niece, giselle. she kind of adopted you as this project. >> yeah. >> reporter: now, why did she do that? >> i think it was because she wanted me to have the best. >> reporter: as giselle grew older the self-improvement message sometimes came complete with push-ups. after all, maribel was all army. >> when i would get in trouble, she would make me do exercise in order to, like, work off the punishment. >> reporter: and all this time, maribel was hammering away at

giselle. you're gonna finish school. >> oh yes. >> reporter: you're gonna study hard. >> uh-huh. >> reporter: you're gonna have a career. >> yes. this is what you're gonna do, mija." and she would tell her. "okay, giselle?" "yes, tia." >> reporter: maribel got a dog, and rented a two-bedroom apartment in the city of orange which she shared with a roommate a quiet chemist named k.c joy who also had a dog. >> i thought it was a perfect match. like, he has a dog. she has a dog. he seems quiet. you know? he's not gonna have all these people coming over. >> reporter: by may, 2013, everything seemed great. maribel was leading by example, finishing up her degree in criminal justice at cal state fullerton -- giselle was following in her strong footsteps. >> and she was dropping off money at my house because i had gotten good grades.

and she had just got her hair done, dyeding -- dyed and styled for her graduation. >> reporter: she looked great? >> yeah. >> reporter: and she was happy? >> yeah, she was. >> reporter: and that's why it made no sense when --just days later -- maribel ramos soldier, student, loving aunt --simply disappeared. >> reporter: what had happened to maribel ramos? when we come back: >> i'm freaking out! her door is open, her lights are on, her bed's undone everything was horrible, and i felt it. >> reporter: the mystery was about to deepen. nobody'd heard from her? >> nobody. how can you see yourself in new glasses...

without your glasses? at lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. making sure all your vision choices are clear. lenscrafters loves eyes up to 27% more brush movements. patented sonic technology with get healthier gums in two weeks. innovation and you philips sonicare save when you give philips sonicare this holiday season.

whose bad breath could make a kitten cry? don't let it be you. one swish of scope kills millions of bad breath germs freshening your breath. so you can be the guy whose breath doesn't make kittens cry. [ meows ] scope. the freshest fresh, guaranteed. whose breath doesn't make kittens cry. [ meows ] kitchen in a different way.r like i did, with knorr pasta sides. just add some juicy shrimp, tomatoes and spinach and you've turned sides into a whole new dish. knorr pasta sides, see a different side.

>> reporter: may 3, 2013, was a friday, a day that should have been an easy day for maribel ramos. school was nearly over, graduation was so close. but that morning things weren't right. >> i got a text from k.c. at 10:00 a.m. and he said, "your sister didn't come home." >> reporter: they'd been roommates for more than a year now. k.c. felt protective of maribel. he told lucy he'd already called police to report her missing. >> orange police, dispatcher rose. >> oh, this is not an emergency, and i have a roommate. she's 36 years old, and she didn't come home last night. >> so what i did is i text her at 11:00. and i said, "happy friday," 'cause we usually text each other anyways. that was my way of connecting. and she didn't text me back. >> unusual? >> yes. >> reporter: lucy still wasn't worried. she knew her combat-hardened sister could take care of herself.

but then evening came. and for maribel, friday night was softball night. she loved to play and never missed a game. but this friday night, she didn't show. >> reporter: now lucy's phone was ringing, maribel's teammates on the line. >> they told me, "go to the house. the police are there. do not take giselle." i'm freaking out. >> and i walk in, and my sister's not there. her door is open. her lights are on. her bed's undone. my head started spinning. everything was horrible, and i felt it. >> reporter: detective joey ramirez with the orange police department got the call that evening. and he also had a bad feeling about everything. >> it sounds like you were taking this pretty seriously from the get-go. >> absolutely. >> why couldn't she just be off by herself or with some other friends and maybe she lost her phone or forgot to call?

>> that was our hope, that she was just missing and that she'd come walkin' through the door. but the family and friends that were, expressed that she was very responsible. >> and nobody'd heard from her? >> nobody. >> reporter: so ramirez and his team went into action. they quickly figured out that if she left on of her own accord, it didn't look like maribel had planned to be out long. >> she left her car at home. >> her car was there. her keys were gone. her phone was gone. but her toothbrush was there, so was her big purse she used when she had a lot to carry. >> k.c. returned home hours after police first got there. he again told the cops what he had told them that morning. that maribel was missing. >> reporter: lucy and the softball team went to the police station, hoping for answers. but morning came, and there weren't any. so channeling her big sister, lucy decided to stop waiting and make her own luck. >> i woke up on saturday, and i thought, "wow, this is seriously

happening." so i posted a picture of her on facebook, and it was immediate. people went into action. >> reporter: friends from the university got together, family members, her roommate, lots of people whom maribel had touched wanted to help. they hung flyers in english and spanish, they reached out to reporters. >> it's very not like her after eight years of service in the army to just disappear. >> unusual thing was being next day, friday morning, she was not here. >> i helped my mom pass out flyers around school, pretty much anything i could do. >> did you think they'd find her? >> yes, i did. >> reporter: giselle was 14 at the time. but detective ramirez, who has been a cop for more years than giselle's been alive was not as hopeful. >> she's not using her cell phone. she's not takin' any money out. no one's heard from her. when you've picked up no trace of her after a couple of days,

you still think you're looking for a living person? >> reporter: the percentages are starting to drop. not in our favor. >> 'cause by then you've called all the hospitals. >> all hospitals. jails. >> there's an alert out that any police officer, what, in southern california sees her? >> correct. and the media was also helping. >> and nothing? >> nothing. >> reporter: no maribel on security tape from any nearby store. police checked all of them. they found only this image from the security camera outside the manager's office for her apartment complex. it's maribel, paying the rent. it's may 2nd at 8:18 p.m., the night before anyone realized she had disappeared. maribel seems to be alone. >> reporter: so what the cops needed to do was talk to everyone who was anyone in maribel's life. turns out there were a lot of people they suddenly needed to get to know. including a current boyfriend, an ex-boyfriend, and someone

maribel had just met. a guy she'd made a date with online, a guy whose name maribel had apparently kept completely to herself. >> reporter: coming up. the men in maribel's life, suddenly, under scrutiny. >> you're not under arrest. anything like that. >> i wouldn't think so. >> and that haunting phone call. >> scared. >> when "dateline" continues. everything life throws my way. except for frown lines. those i'm throwing back. [ female announcer ] olay total effects. nourishing vitamins, and seven beautiful benefits in one. for younger-looking skin. so while your life may be ever-changing... ♪ ...your beautiful skin will stay beautiful. total effects from olay. your best beautiful.

total effects from olay. ♪ ♪ discover all the naturally moisturizing flavors of burt's bees lip balm. sears lowest pricesgs of the season event. hurry in with your sears card and save 50% off kenmore wall ovens. plus, an extra 15% off all other appliances over four ninety-nine. only at sears. getting an understanding of what they're looking for. somebody who has sensitivity, they want relief from their sensitivity pain, but they also want the other things that are available in toothpaste. new sensodyne complete protection is designed specifically for sensitivity sufferers, but then, on the other side of the coin, it's also delivering on the other attributes that patients want out of a sensitivity toothpaste, delivering a complete package. i think dentists are going to want to recommend sensodyne complete protection. it's going to be a breath of fresh air for them.

it's amanda. hey sweetie. what?odyn[phones rings]tection. okay, i'll send it. one hundred seventy-two dollars for a chemistry book, what is it, made of gold? just use citi popmoney.

boom. ah, she's feeling lucky. hey sweetie...cancun, yeah no, you'll be spending spring break with your new chemistry book. with citi popmoney it's easy to send money to just about anyone, anytime. visit your local branch or citi.com/easierbanking to learn more. californians are discovering the real risks behind prop 46. it was written and paid for by the trial lawyers to make them millions... while, for the rest of us, health care costs go up. no wonder every major newspaper in the state opposes prop 46. they say 46 "overreached in a decidedly cynical way." it's a ploy "for trial lawyers to enrich themselves." and prop 46 has "too many potential drawbacks to be worth the risk." time to vote no on prop 46.

>> reporter: this is the city of orange, california, in the county of orange, california. much of it is a small town stuck in time. there's a university, a zoo, cute local businesses and a police department that doesn't have to deal with a lot of violent crime. after all, the happiest place on earth is just down the street. but in may 2013, detective joey ramirez was far from happy. he had a lot of ground to cover and a strong sense that time was against him as he tried to figure out what had happened to maribel ramos. >> just vanished? >> yes. >> how often does that kind of

thing happen? >> it doesn't happen often. >> reporter: ramirez started by investigating the men in maribel's life. it turned out there were a few of them. >> did you know she was doing all that online dating? did she talk about that? >> yeah, she did. >> reporter: maribel sometimes met guys through a website called "plenty of fish." that's how she found paul lopez. they'd been dating for a few months and paul had even joined her weekly softball game. lopez was the last person maribel talked to on the phone. now police wanted to talk to him. >> you know you're not under arrest, anything like that. >> i wouldn't think so. >> reporter: ramirez sat across from paul and asked about his relationship with maribel. >> nothing's been like exclusive, it's just been, you know, dating. >> you date other people too? >> me? yeah. >> ok. you don't know if she dates other people or not? >> i -- don't ask don't tell. >> reporter: and he asked lopez where he was on the night maribel disappeared. >> did you come into orange at

all on thursday? >> no. >> reporter: police also had to consider this: maribel had told lucy that things weren't working out with paul lopez. >> she wasn't a match with paul. so she was online-- talking to people. >> reporter: it wasn't clear if paul knew, even as they kept dating, that maribel was back on plenty of fish and had met a new man. he was a photographer who had worked a lot with the military. it was a connection for both of them. >> how did she describe that guy? >> she said that-- she said, "oh, i met someone. he's very interesting. we have a lot in common." >> and you thought what? good? >> i thought great. >> reporter: they planned a date for cinco de mayo. but two days before that date was to happen, maribel vanished. so police talked to that photographer, and made a recording of the conversation. >> you're saying you never actually met her in person? >> no. >> reporter: so he said, anyway. there was also an ex-boyfriend who'd been calling.

police needed to check him out. and there was this lead. >> there was a person at cal state fullerton that was in the veteran's association with her that had given her a bad feeling. he may have wanted to pursue some sort of dating relationship. >> but it gave her a bad feeling how? >> she wasn't interested in him and she didn't give him, ah-- any attention, yet he didn't go away. >> so he made her feel uncomfortable? >> correct. >> reporter: and by now detective ramirez had learned something else. just a little over a week before she vanished, maribel ramos had called 911. >> hi, orange police. >> hi, it's not an emergency, but i just um-is there recording? >> is there a what? >> is this conversation recording? >> yes, every conversation is recorded. >> reporter: maribel wanted it on the record. she wanted police to know that she was very afraid of someone.

>> i'm just like calling so that you guys know that if something happens, i did it because i was trying to defend myself. >> reporter: she might have been afraid, but this army-strong woman who'd always taken care of herself feared she might be the one putting the hurt on her attacker. >> all i'm trying to say is that i'm warning, i'm honestly -- i will fight for my life and i swear i will- i will kill him. >> something had happened to make her pretty scared. >> yes. >> there's nothing on the call to say what that was. >> right. >> reporter: what was she afraid of? not clear. who was she afraid of? that was another story entirely. coming up -- another man in maribel's life sits down with police. and he seems eager to help with the case. >> so you were doing your own surveillance? >> yes. >> reporter: did her roommate know something that police didn't?

[thinking] started my camry. went to the auction. won a storage locker. found an old guitar. tracked down the previous owner. reunited them. hit the jackpot. the bold new camry. one bold choice leads to another. toyota. let's go places.

no sign of him yet. keep looking. [ narrator ] their mission: to get richard sherman his campbell's chunky soup. hi, baby! hi, mama! take us home! wow! it's new chunky beer-n-cheese with beef and bacon soup. beer... cheese... beef... bacon... ♪ i love it. and mama loves you. [ all ] awwwwww! it fills you up right. and this is the new ♪this is iphone 6 plus. 6. have you seen some of the new stuff the camera can do? yeah, it's unbelievable. its slo-mo is slower than ever before. ever before. its time-lapse can turn hours into seconds. into seconds.

image stabilization helps keep everything smooth. so smooth. the camera on the new iphones are better than ever. sha-pow! what, what was that? that's the sound the camera makes. no, it's more like a "chik-chik." nope i think it's "sha-pow!" [camera noises]♪

>> it should have been her proudest moment. maribel ramos joined the army to put herself through college. days away from her graduation ceremony, she vanished. earlier maribel had called police to say she was in danger and afraid for her life. what was it or who was it that still had her so terrified? here again, josh mankiewicz. >> reporter: by now, posters blanketed the city of orange. maribel ramos was missing and her family was frantic.

>> soon as i got a call that she didn't show up to her baseball game i got the worst feeling in the world -- >> reporter: putting himself out there with all the rest was maribel's roommate, k.c joy. >> she's my only family i have. she's my best friend. and i want her to come back. that's all. >> reporter: kc had moved from tennessee to southern california for a job. he had no family and few friends here. so he turned to maribel. and she was happy to include him she even arranged for k.c to tutor her niece in math. >> he seemed nice, um, respectful. he -- he liked to be involved with the family and my aunt. >> reporter: he didn't have a family of his own, so he kinda attached himself to yours? >> yeah. >> reporter: but they weren't boyfriend and girlfriend? >> no. >> reporter: even so, in photos maribel and k.c seem to be having a great time. they even went on a cruise together. soon, police would be talking with k.c joy. >> do you mind have you got a business card sir.

>> yeah. >> 'cause i like to keep track of names straight and -- >> yeah, that's good idea. >> reporter: the formalities over, detective ramirez started asking about maribel. >> as you know, um, right now there's some people, some family and friends that are worried about um maribel your roommate -- joy: and, i'm also a friend... >> and i care about her very much. >> reporter: but, he said, he had no idea what happened to her. >> so when was the last time that you saw her? >> [ sighs ] about 9:00 p.m. that's when i talk, at 9:00 and i went out. >> reporter: that was thursday night, may 2nd. the next night -- when the cops were called to maribel's house, k.c. wasn't there. he explained he'd been so worried that he did his own investigation, watching his own front door from his car parked out front. >> all those movies and detective movies, if somebody always comes back their crime scene, or whatever i wanna see who's gonna knock on my door. so i just park the car in the front i took my notebook, had a

binocular in there. >> so you were doing your own surveillance? >> yes. >> reporter: it sounded a little odd. maybe k.c. had just seen too many crime movies. but if he had, then he'd probably know cops don't miss little details like -- well, like this: >> he's sittin' across the table from me. he's wearin' a short sleeved shirt, he has jeans on and -- sandals. and instantly i can see he has scratches on both his arms. he's got a scratch across his forehead from the -- from his hairline to his eye. >> how'd you get all these scratches on you? >> we go eisenhower park all the time. >> uh-huh. >> and like you-you go exactly, you go-we pick up by the pond. >> ah huh. >> we pick up fishing lines all the time you go there. >> can i see? >> fishing lines. >> those are from fishing lines? >> no, no, no. i'm going to explain. >> reporter: k.c explained he was walking the dogs when he saw fishing line in a bush.

worrying about the ducks in the park getting caught in the line, he reached in to remove it, and got all those scratches. >> reporter: you've been around long enough you could tell the difference between scratches that a person might get, you know, reaching into a bush or from an animal, and scratches that somebody would get during -- you know, an actual fight with another person. >> right, and some of the scratches on his arms did look like scratches that would be from something other than fingernails. but there was one particular set of scratches on his right bicep that to me clearly look like scratches from a hand. >> reporter: and that says to you he was in a fight? >> it does. when was the last time you guys had any sort of an argument? >> actually the thursday. >> this thursday? >> reporter: that was the last night anyone saw maribel --the

night she was caught on camera paying the rent, which kc said was what they were arguing about. >> well, what happened? >> rent money. >> tell me about that. >> ah 'cause i -- i was -- i'm supposed to move out. >> reporter: it turned out k.c. had recently lost his job -- and could no longer pay his share of the rent. maribel had asked him to move out. that was reason for concern, of course. and so was this -- >> reporter: detective ramirez had learned about the 9-1-1 call maribel had made 11 days before she disappeared, and he knew that in that call, the man maribel said she might have to kill was k.c. joy. >> his full name is. kwang chol -- what i understand it's kwang chol joy. now weren't the police out to your house recently 'cause you guys had an argument? >> we'd been drinking quite a bit that night, and she started yelling at me. >> reporter: k.c said it was all

just a drunken misunderstanding. >> i don't like you. [laughs ] >> i'm not attracted to you she started screaming and yelling. i said maribel, we had great time tonight, what, what's the problem? >> reporter: what was the problem? detective ramirez heard from maribel's family something very interesting. k.c. joy had wanted to be more than just roommates with maribel ramos. lucy told us the same thing. >> reporter: when did it become apparent to you that k.c. sort of had a crush on your sister? >> ah he called me and then he just says, "i-- i'm, like-- i'm, like, in love with your sister." so i was, like, "oh, this is great." >> reporter: you knew that your sister wasn't in love with him. >> yes. and that's a bad situation. so at that point i'm, like, "okay, k.c.. you know -- you know, you're a good man. and i'm sure you'll find somebody out there for you. but -- >> but it's not going to be her? >> yeah. >> reporter: now the woman k.c had told lucy he wanted had told him that not only did she not

love him, but he had to basically get out of her life. despite that, k.c continued talking with police. >> reporter: mr. joy was being cooperative. >> he was. >> reporter: talkin' to officers. let -- let you guys take stuff out of the house. >> he did. >> reporter: and -- never showed up with a lawyer? >> he did not. >> reporter: doesn't sound like that did a lot to set aside your suspicions? >> no, it didn't. >> reporter: suspicions, sure, but no proof a crime had even occurred. maribel ramos was missing -- that's all anyone knew. >> you ready sir? >> yes. >>. >> reporter: so k.c. joy walked out of that police station -- like all the other men in maribel's life -- a free man. >> reporter: coming up -- >> he knew a lot more than he was telling us. >> reporter: finally, the clue they'd been waiting for. and you won't believe how they got it! >> no one had searched there? >> no. >> but he's looking at it? >> yes. >> reporter: when dateline continues.

a 3d white smile has the power to captivate. that's why shakira uses... crest 3d white with whitelock technology. removing up to ninety percent of surface stains, and locking out future stains. so your smile always steals the show. crest 3d white. honey, don't use life's bleachable moments need clorox bleach. running here. running there.

running into things. running out of things. making runs. running out of more things. making more runs. running to. running from. running around in circles. sometimes you like running. but wouldn't it be nice if you didn't always have to? introducing target subscriptions. free scheduled delivery of your favorite essentials. now running out no longer requires running out.

>> reporter: the days were ticking by and still no maribel. forensic results were coming in, dna, fingerprints, cell phone data. none of it adding up to anything that told the cops what had happened to her. so police were looking at the usual suspects, like her boyfriend, paul lopez. >> reporter: lopez works for the gas company and goes from call

to call in a company truck. the gps on that truck puts him nowhere near the city of orange on the night maribel was seen on that security video. that is, until about midnight. lopez told police that's when he went home. he said he was alone and could prove it. >> my parking spot's actually right by a surveillance camera. >> so the surveillance camera would show you parking. >> reporter: that was enough to get lopez off the list. there was that ex-boyfriend who'd been calling. maribel had never mentioned he'd been a problem. and police didn't think he was involved. there was the photographer from the website plenty of fish. his cell phone data placed him in san diego, out of the area at the time in question. and the veteran from cal state who'd come on too strong? he was in japan. none of them could be connected to maribel's disappearance. so in the end, there was just one person the cops couldn't stop looking at.

the first person to report maribel missing, her roommate kc joy. >> orange police dispatcher, rose. >> oh, this is not an emergency. and, i have a roommate, she's 36 years old and she didn't come home last night. >> he was also the last to see her alive. >> i felt she most likely was dead. i felt that there was a high probability mr. joy was responsible for it. and he knew a lot more than he was tellin' us. >> reporter: so detective ramirez became k.c. joy's shadow, appearing in the morning and then later by moonlight. hours after k.c.'s first police interview, a cheerful joey ramirez showed up at his house. >> hey. >> hey k.c., how are you? can we come in? >> reporter: he brought a voice recorder and a few more questions. >> how are you this morning? >> all right. >> good, good, good. >> reporter: detective ramirez already knew the answers to some

of them. >> so when you say work. she works at? >> ah, for fullerton. >> full -- cal state fullerton? >> yeah. >> reporter: and to some he didn't. >> did you have any marks on your legs or anything? >> no. >> okay. well, let me just ask you. do you have any injuries on your legs? >> no. >> you have no injuries on your legs? >> no. >> whatsoever? >> not a one on -- no i don't have any. >> okay. >> reporter: then ramirez showed up again that night. >> kc, joey. hey just -- a couple of quick questions for ya then i'll get outta here. how are you doing? are you okay? >> i've been -- been crying. >> how many times did you talk to him? >> i believe i talked to him at least nine times. >> reporter: ramirez tried scaring kc about potential evidence found in his car. >> why would there be blood in the red versa? >> blood? >> yeah, right. you -- you tell me there's a blood i don't know anything about it. what blood? you tell me. >> reporter: he tried backing kc

into a corner about what might be found on kc's hard drive. >> well, the good thing is if there's anything that you ever deleted that you wished you hadn't, we should be able to help you out with that. >> you're hoping he's gonna think to himself, "okay, everything i've deleted, they're gonna see"? >> right. >> didn't work. >> didn't work. we were swinging and missing regularly, on a daily basis. >> reporter: k.c. joy was willing to talk repeatedly without an attorney. >> this is bree. bree this is kc. >> hi. >> he's been very cooperative with us. he's got um -- >> i've seen movie now you can take this -- take a fingerprint. >> he says to you, "oh, i've seen this movie. and now you're gonna take my fingerprints." he's, like -- he's like a pro. he's seen it all. >> he's being very relaxed. i felt that he was very confident that we weren't gonna figure it out. >> reporter: what mr. joy apparently didn't know was that

other officers were watching him 24/7. the surveillance teams noticed he was spending a lot of time at the public library, and he was using the computers there, probably because police had taken away his phone, and maribel's computer which was the one k.c. normally used. >> initially we would have -- undercover policemen go into the library, walk around him, see what he's doin'. and at one point he's seen googling "can a cell phone be tracked if it's turned off?" >> well, that's certainly suspicious. >> it is. >> reporter: detective ramirez was consulting daily with orange county deputy district attorney scott simmons. >> there are things that can be called into question, but they're not immediately proof of anything. >> exactly. and that's why we didn't arrest him right away. >> police needed to see exactly what k.c. joy was doing on those library computers. that would

require a very unusual plan. they obtained a search warrant allowing them to watch in real time every move made on the computer. this is a recording of kc's actual computer key strokes and mouse clicks. that's kc checking his email. that's kc applying for a job. that's kc joy typing in "how long does it take a body to decay." suspicious maybe, but not enough. and then he did this -- >> he pulled up a facebook page that showed there was gonna be an awareness walk in the near future. >> a walk to help find maribel? >> it was. he google mapped that park and zoomed in onto it. he then panned out, navigated over about eight to 10 miles. >> this area that he was zeroing in on, was it an area that had crossed your field of vision at all? >> no. >> reporter: here kc is google

mapping a place that no one had searched. watch as he zooms in to that area with the tree. >> that tree didn't figure in the investigation in any way? >> not in any stretch of the imagination. >> and no one had searched there. >> no. >> and no reason for that to be in the paper or anywhere else? >> no. i mean, it's out in a remote canyon location. >> but he's lookin' at it. >> yes. yes. >> reporter: by the time kc was walking out of the library that afternoon, police were already headed to that tree. >> reporter: coming up, another startling discovery. >> this is way off the beaten path. we didn't know what to think. >> reporter: and the suspect speaks. hear from k.c. joy himself. >> are you dangerous? >> me? i'm the perfect, most honest guy there is. it interesting, after all these years? she mixes it up. with nice'n easy, you can shift a shade with confidence, and still look like your most amazing you.

go warmer, golder, stronger, even bolder. with our broadest spectrum of natural looking shades. you know what i love? things never get boring. she always keeps me guessing. go ahead, mix it up, spice it up, shift a shade with nice'n easy. [ male announcer ] you wouldn't ignore signs of damage in your home. are you sure you're not ignoring them in your body? even if you're treating your crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis, an occasional flare may be a sign of damaging inflammation. and if you ignore the signs, the more debilitating your symptoms could become. learn more about the role damaging inflammation may be playing in your symptoms with the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis.com. and then speak with your gastroenterologist. with the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis.com. sears lowest pricesgs of the season event. hurry in with your sears card and save 50% off kenmore wall ovens. plus, an extra 15% off all other appliances

over four ninety-nine. only at sears. how can you see yourself in new glasswithout your glasses? at lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. making sure all your vision choices are clear. lenscrafters loves eyes best foods and holiday leftovers become irresistibly creamy turkey casserole. real delicious best foods. bring out the best foods. bring out the best. if it doesn't work fast... you're on to the next thing. clinically proven neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair. it targets fine lines and wrinkles with the fastest retinol formula available. you'll see younger looking skin in just one week. one week? this one's a keeper. rapid wrinkle repair. and for dark spots rapid tone repair.

from neutrogena®. and for dark spots rapid tone repair. you could be at the corner of "i'm throwing away money" and "i had no idea." well, walgreens has your back. our expert pharmacists make it easy for you to save on your prescriptions. so you can keep your money where it belongs. swing by walgreens... ...where you could save even more with medicare prescription copays as low as zero dollars. at the corner of happy and healthy.

>> reporter: as he dug deeper into k.c. joy's background, detective joey ramirez found more and more evidence that k.c. was infatuated, even obsessed, with maribel ramos. for instance the time maribel told k.c. he was too old for her. and he responded by getting plastic surgery. >> and $12,000 later he's got a different face? >> correct. >> and he says the reason he got it is because of the woman who's missing? >> correct. >> reporter: now, here was k.c. at the public library, google mapping a remote wilderness area. since the dawn of detective novels, killers have returned to the scene of the crime. but these days there's no need for the bad guy to even get in

his car. now, it can be done with the click of a mouse. the good guys still have to do it the old-fashioned way. detective shawn hey don got the call on the radio. drive out to rustic modjeska canyon southeast of the city of orange . >> we didn't know what to think. this is a very rural area; no one would be out here mountain biking or hiking. this is way off the beaten path. >> reporter: at the other end of the two-way radio, detective bryan stanley was rewatching k.c.'s google search trying to give detective haydon better directions. k.c. focused on an intersection and then moved over to the tree. >> in the center of the shot, there's one tree that looks like a bush out in the middle of the wash. i told him to look for that tree and then in the wash from that area. >> reporter: hayden and his partner found the tree, then moved off the road and past the barbed wire fence, and then they knew they were close. >> as we were kinda trekking

through this, brush here, the first and foremost thing we found was, you know, an overwhelming smell of like a decaying body or something dead. and my partner and i kind of turned our head, and, we looked over, and we saw this kind of shallow grave site. >> reporter: at long last, there she was. >> one of the detectives called and said, "joey, you're not going to believe this. we found her." maribel ramos had been left alone in that dusty canyon since before anyone knew she was missing. >> reporter: now, ramirez knew it was time for one last meeting with k.c. joy. >> well, thanks for coming down here voluntarily. i really appreciate it. >> well i, you gonna give me a ride back to library? then i have to walk that's, that's -- i say, that's ah i don't have car. >> reporter: ramirez didn't tell k.c. that maribel had been found. he just tried for the final time to get k.c. to be the one who would say what had happened. >> k.c., i think you have the

answers in your heart. >> no. i want to go. >> that you do and that you should share them. >> i have to go. >> reporter: so once again, kc joy walked out of the interview room. he didn't get far. this time, he was arrested and charged with the murder of maribel ramos. the woman he had loved, who had not loved him. when he was taken into custody, h.k.c. joy was wearing maribel's dog tags. kc joy pleaded not guilty and in july of this year, a little more than a year after maribel vanished, he went on trial for her murder. >> this is maribel ramos. maribel is no longer with us. >> reporter: the prosecution laid out the evidence against k.c. the unrequited love, the scratches, the 911 call, and finally, the computer searches. >> he's wonderin', "how close is maribel's body to where they're doin' that awareness search?" that's why he goes to google maps. >> reporter: the defense pointed out there was no dna, fingerprints, cell phone info or

standard forensic evidence that tied kc joy to maribel's murder or to the crime scene. >> we don't know what happened. what kind of force was used? nobody knows. who used it first? nobody knows. was there a weapon used? was it used by maribel? or was it used by k.c. joy? nobody knows. >> reporter: all true. but the computer searches were enough for the jury. >> we the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant, k.c. joy, guilty of the crime of felony. >> reporter: k.c. joy was convicted of second degree murder. after which, he told me the jury got it wrong. >> are you dangerous? >> me? i'm the perfect, most honest guy there is, and most trustworthy. i say, "i'm a gentleman. >> reporter: kc says he wants a new trial, to prove he couldn't have killed maribel, his quote, best friend. >> you had a crush on her? >> no, we are absolutely not. you know, as i always maintain

that we are platonic friends. >> you never told lucy that you had a crush on her? >> nope, i didn't ever said that. she -- >> you never said you were in love with her? >> nope, never said that either. >> and you weren't obsessed with her? no. i was not obsessed with her. >> reporter: the plastic surgery? his choice, he says. not done for maribel. and the computer search of the area where maribel's body was found? kc says he didn't do it. someone else did, by remotely accessing the same computer, right after he had used it. >> you don't think that's quite a coincidence? >> it may be a coincidence, but i didn't do it. >> you're being framed here? >> i say yes. >> if i had a paid attorney, somebody who could l-- somebody like o.j. simpson had, i wouldn't be here right now. i'd be out. >> so the problem here is not that you're guilty. it's that you don't have enough money? >> exactly. since like, money talks. if you have money, i would not be here. >> reporter: kc joy was sentenced to fifteen years to life for killing maribel ramos.

>> what do you think happened? >> i think she went to bed, and i think what he did is he -- he got a pillow and smothered her. and as he's got this pillow over her face she struggles a little bit. and i believe that's where he got the scratches on his right tricep. >> if mr. joy hadn't done that google map search leading you, essentially, to the body, would he be a free man? >> if no other evidence came up, yes. >> he'd be a person of interest in a cold case. >> correct. >> reporter: maribel ramos graduated from college posthumously. her niece giselle, whom maribel had always hoped would follow in her footsteps, instead ended up walking the path meant for her aunt. >> i received her diploma and i got to sit in her seat and walk upstage and receive everything. >> it was so difficult to be there.

it was difficult to see my daughter in such pain, walking for her aunt. >> maribel ramos. she was an army veteran. >> reporter: every wednesday in orange they lower the flag for the fallen who served. but maribel has a legacy: giselle, now 16 seems well on her way to becoming the successful woman maribel had hoped for. >> your mom says that you've sort of been the rock. >> yeah. >> reporter: that they wouldn't have made it through this without you. >> yes. >> where'd you get that toughness? >> from her. >> from maribel? >> yeah. that's all for this edition of "dateline" chlt we'll see you again next friday.

a reminder, we're now on at 8:00, 7:00 central. stay tuned for the season premiere . - previously grimm... - we should do this more often. - is nick okay? - no, and i need to know where he is. look, i know this sounds crazy, but he has to drink this. [gunshots] - nick! nick! - oh, god. - take it, nick! - hey! everybody, back! - no! - how did they know that she was a grimm? - trubel walked right in while everyone was woged. - no, they weren't. - you really couldn't see it? - no. - police captain sean renard-- three wounds, right upper, left lower. - get him on the table. two, three. - v-tac on scope. - all right, let's go. give me five liters on standby. [monitor beeping] - when did he go in?